Rooftops
by thorin smoakenshield
Summary: "They both shared fiery tempers, daddy issues, and inferiority complexes they were far too proud to admit to having." Artemis contemplates her relationship w/ a fellow archer above Star City. RoyArt w/ mentions of Spitfire & CheshRoy. Very light M/High T


**Author's Note:** _Whoa, an actual story out of me? I haven't written in months, I know. And the funny thing is that this isn't even Spitfire, my usual coupling. Sorry to anyone who put me on their Author Alert list for my stories for those two, but I'll be completely honest; I ship Artemis with everybody and especially Roy. I mean two sexy archers? Together? Unf._

_I also have to apologize for not publishing anything during the _Young Justice_ hiatus. Since the show went on break, I kind of lost my inspiration to write fics for it. But, since it's come back, I've decided that I should wrap all of my unfinished works._

_I started this months back, but really felt the need to finish it after 'Insecurity' (Artemis, BB!) and before the first season of the show ends. _

_So enjoy and do tell me what you think of my depiction of these two. I despise out-of-character writing and do my best to avoid it. And with that, let the story begin!_

**Disclaimer: **_I do not own _Young Justice_. You think there would be any hiatuses if I did? Pssh, no._

…

"_Until you see me in your dreams, _

_We'll stay awake beneath the trees, _

_We'll watch the buildings turn to dust, _

_A sky of diamonds just for us"_

_- "I'll Hold My Breath" by Ellie Goulding_

…

The smell of his bed sheets had become strangely familiar to Artemis. Crisp and clean, there was no flowery undertone or sweet aroma left behind by the detergent he used. And she knew for a fact that fabric softener was not an option for the man sleeping beside her due to his allergies, for he had broken out in a nasty rash the _one_ time she managed to smuggle a sheet of it into the dryer along with his crimson-colored costume.

The archer was pretty sure that if she told that little gem of a story (Emergency Room trip and all) at the next team reunion, he'd cut her ponytail off in her sleep.

There were other scents present in the fabric that currently ensconced their still forms. As Artemis shifted her face against the wrinkled fabric of the pillow beneath her head, the dull tinge of sweat and dried blood filled the stale air of his bedroom. She wrinkled her nose and burrowed closer to the warm figure to her side, who smelled of spices, aftershave and the woods, despite the fact that he lived in the heart of Star City, slowly growing intoxicated by the pleasant fragrance. Her sleep-muddled mind became even foggier, and thoughts soon began to swirl within it.

In all of the time since they had become whatever it was they were to each other, Artemis had learned that he was not one for cuddling, spooning, or any kind of human contact that might have suggested feelings of endearment. He was all roaming hands, hot breath, and dirty talk the increasingly growing number of nights that they rendezvoused on patrols across Star City or Gotham together; or the instances she or he slipped into the other's window after a mission. They were typically coated in blood or sweat, most usually both, only to be covered in a fresh layer of perspiration following the short time either of them seemingly tolerated each other (then again, that dirty talk was _quite_ dirty, scathing too, and suggested otherwise) and instead shared a moment of intense passion. Or two.

And that's exactly what was between them. _Passion_. Passion, and _only _passion. They both shared fiery tempers, daddy issues, and inferiority complexes they were far too proud to admit to having. Finding solace in each other's arms, or more accurately, _bodies,_ was a release from the frustration they felt over the numerous issues in their separate lives. For him, it was the everlasting need to prove himself to the League after all these years, the people he saved on a near-daily basis, and most importantly _himself. _For Artemis, it was trying to figure out what exactly she was going to do with her life and how she could ever lead a normal one with a past as fucked up as hers.

After they'd come together in a tangle of damp sheets and long blonde hair, and experience that sense of euphoria that only they together knew how to experience; he'd clamber off of her, and hold himself above her shaking form. Breathing heavily, he would stare at her in the dim light of the moon and streetlight-illuminated room with piercing blue eyes.

He couldn't deny that she was beautiful; especially in those moments afterwards. Her sharp features and almond-shaped eyes were complimented by rosy lips and even rosier cheeks. A thin film of sweat left her warm, olive skin glistening, and the lights of the city that bled in from the window decorated her toned figure with erratic patterns and odd shapes in pale oranges and neon blues. Her stormy gray eyes rested shut lightly, and the man hovering over her would instead focus his attention on the long, black lashes that rested gently upon her cheeks. Only when her breath returned to a normal rate would her darkly-colored orbs flutter open; the usual defensive glint within them absent and replaced with a look of content and peacefulness.

The two would lock gazes for what felt like hours, before he would silently lower himself back down to her level with those arms of his – and how Artemis _loved_ _those arms_ – and feather her collarbones with kisses so light, she wasn't always sure his lips made contact with her skin. Her calloused fingers would rake through his auburn locks, and then fall to his shoulders where she traced the numerous scars left behind by enemies, sparring matches, and her own fingernails. Then, without warning, he would slip out of her grasp, place one last hard kiss on her neck (he _loved her neck_), where she was sure to have several hickeys the next morning, and roll onto his side with his back to Artemis.

Though his face wasn't visible, she knew that he was awake. And he the same. The archers would lie in silence beside each other, flushed and bare, without making any form of contact despite their actions only a little while before. They remained in that position, thinking and musing to themselves, watching the alarm clock on the bedside table change minute by minute, or shadows play upon the opposite wall, until they were lulled to sleep by each other's steady breathing and the sounds of the city outside of their own little world within Roy Harper's bedroom.

Had someone told Artemis five years prior that she would end up the fuck-buddy of Green Arrow's moody former-protégé, she'd have laughed in their faces. And had that 'someone' been Wally West, she'd have hit him in the head with her bow for good measure.

But, there she was, covered and cozy beneath his plain white bedspread, which he received from Dinah at Ollie's annual Christmas party last year, with a serious case of bedhead. And if the heroic parent figures in both of their lives knew that she was currently lying naked under that very bedspread, and had many times before, she knew that they would have a hard time believing it as well.

A weight suddenly draped over Artemis' waist interrupted her memory of Ollie nearly catching her and Roy necking (and doing a hell of a lot more) in his coat closet during the very party he was given his bedding at. Though he never intentionally held her, she'd find that in his sleep Roy would throw an arm around her (_those arms_), pull her to his chest, or slumber pushed against her back, keeping the two of them toasty from the shared body heat.

He drew her closer, and Artemis opened her eyes slowly, frowning at the sparse light that filled the room. She rolled over and onto her other side, a tricky maneuver while under his arm, trying not to wake him. Mere inches from Roy's face, she would delicately trace his handsome features with one of her short, chipped nails and count the fine lines and light scars that marred his skin.

One above his left eyebrow from a shirtless training session with Kaldur she remembered observing _vigorously_, another on his neck she was pretty sure was from her own teeth, a slightly darker mark on his chin from an armed robbery or mugging or something of the sort that he had foiled, and one on his right cheek that she knew was from one of _her _sai swords. She'd spend minutes or even hours staring at them, grazing them lightly with her calloused fingers for however long Roy would sleep, before she'd have to explain why she was so interested in his skin's various quirks, and why they were so close together. Things were easier when only one of them was conscious and questions went unanswered.

With the softest of sighs, she pulled away from him and kicked the covers off of her. She and Roy were both messy sleepers, and she found herself disentangling their legs. As Artemis pulled herself off of the mattress, her body cracked and popped in an assortment of places, and her face scrunched in discomfort. She caught a glimpse of a bloodstain that marred the pristine white of Roy's bedding, caused by a nasty cut on her calf acquired the night before. She groaned both in pain and how annoyed he'd be over the unintentional defacing of his linens upon his awakening.

She hopped across his hardwood floors to the attached bathroom, where she dug through the medical cabinet and grabbed an assortment of first aid products. Artemis sat on the edge of the tub and quickly went to work dressing her wound, hissing as the rubbing alcohol seeped into her injury. Making a mental note to tell Roy to pick up more gauze pads, the blonde drifted back into his sleeping quarters.

Artemis toed at the remains of her tattered forest green uniform thrown messily on the floor. The hooded cloak she had taken to wearing in recent years to hide her hair looked to be the only salvageable piece left of her vigilante get-up, and even that was smeared with dried blood and decorated with several bullet-made markings She plucked it up and held the flexible, weightless, and bulletproof fabric to her chest, closed her eyes, and breathed in. It would have to be taken to Alfred, who had mastered quite a few tricks on removing stains from spandex and other materials over the years. Maybe if he was generous he'd spare her a few of his peanut butter cookies while she visited the Wayne Household (read: Dick).

Artemis tossed the cloak with a rustle back to the floor before crossing the room to Roy's armoire, where she had claimed a drawer of her own last month. Catching the zeta tube back to her own apartment in Gotham in combat boots and one of his old high school soccer jerseys had gotten pretty old pretty fast, and with Roy's begrudging approval (like she'd have cared if she hadn't of gotten it anyways), Artemis cleared out one of his numerous sock drawers (How many pairs of socks did one guy need?) and commandeered it as her own. Though the jerseys had remained in her possession, as they were soft and worn, and ideal for lazing about, and she surprisingly didn't mind having the name 'Harper' splayed across her back.

Finally, after digging through sweatpants, camisoles, and a leather jacket or two, Artemis pulled on a pair of Wonder Woman underwear (a birthday present from Zatanna), black yoga shorts, and an off-the-shoulder red sweater, almost the same color as Roy's uniform. She pulled the hair elastic from her wrist, and attempted to smooth her wild locks into a ponytail, only to have it snap as she began to bind her hair into submission. She swore at the realization that it was her last, and shrugged, opting to leave it loose instead.

After closing the drawer a bit more loudly than she meant to, Artemis sauntered over to the window she entered from only a few hours prior and opened it. In one fluid motion, the archer swung through it and out onto the side of Roy's apartment building. She scaled over the faded gray brick with an accuracy acquired after years of climbing over billboards and stony gargoyles, before hoisting herself onto the fire escape nearby, and running over the wrought-iron stairs to the top of the structure.

In the pale morning radiance of the city, the sky still dark and dotted with dimly-glowing stars overhead, the blonde went unnoticed. Creamy yellow, light orange and dusty pink filled the horizon and framed skyscrapers in a hazy glow as the sun rose slowly, reminding Artemis of her imminent departure. She took a deep breath that felt almost clean of the pollution, people, and piss that filled Star City, and turned in a lazy circle. Her golden tendrils tickled her neck and blew softly about her face in the breeze. In the cool bite of the September wind, it became obvious that summer was quickly coming to an end, and Artemis briefly contemplated changing into warmer pants, but decided against the hassle. The nippy air was a refreshing alternative to Roy's stuffy bedroom.

She sat down atop the ledge of the building, dangling her gauze-covered legs over the side. From the ground God-knows-how-many stories below, traffic and an occasional aggravated yell from a taxi driver or street vendor drifted to and through her ears. She hummed a made-up tune to herself and stared at the industrial jungle before her eyes.

She wondered what time it was…and if M'gann, the only other early riser on their former team was awake yet. If Conner was up with her, and what time the Martian's wedding dress shopping appointment Artemis and Dinah were expected at was later today. Was Zatanna coming too? Was she home at her manor house? Or was she off jet-setting the globe with whatever millionaire playboy caught her interest this week? Were she and Dick back together? Or was their on-again, off-again relationship on hold because he was still seeing that Barbara girl they went to high school with? Speaking of which, she had meant to ask him how the new Robin was holding up under Batman's training at their most recent lunch together. He probably was doing just fine, and wasn't the only protégé making progress. Kaldur had mentioned that Aquaman's son was quickly advancing in his sorcery training, and that he himself was engaged to a nice Atlantean girl she'd yet to meet, on account that the couple lived underwater. And Wally…

A fond grin spread over Artemis' lips. That idiot was probably running around the world, head over heels for his new girlfriend Linda, who she met at the last few West congregations and liked very much. Even though and Wally were no longer together, Mary, his mother, and his Aunt Iris still insisted upon seeing her regularly ("I just want to make sure you're taking care of yourself, dear! I know you won't eat right unless I check in on you. I can see your ribs under your shirt, for Batman's sake! I'm sending you home with a plate…tell your mother I said 'hello and to stay well,' hmm?"). In the years that she and the speedster had dated, Artemis had become an honorary member of the West family.

And in the later years of her adolescence after beginning college, when she became pregnant and the two got engaged, she had almost become a full-fledged one at that. Their parents, mentors, and Batman were pretty unhappy by the development, but as time went on, most tensions cooled, and it appeared that almost everything was going to work out; Wally and Artemis would be parents by the end of the school year. That is, until they miscarried and the foundation of the new life the two had built together collapsed. Their relationship had been shaky before, filled with teenage insecurities and petty squabbling, and the stress of the miscarriage, school, and heroism took an additional toll on the lovers, who broke off the engagement and split amicably following one too many blow-outs.

Artemis wrung her hands, and almost felt the modest diamond engagement ring Wally had proposed with present on her finger. That had been returned after she moved out of their shared apartment and she stayed with Ollie and Dinah (she and her mother still weren't on good terms at the time) until she could find a place of her own in her native Gotham.

And that was how she and Roy became closer. Or rather, just close in general. He would pop in from time to time to visit, and sit down with her and the Queen family. Sometimes he brought confections from the bakery a block over from his place that had the best chocolate éclairs Artemis had ever tasted, but mostly it was League information. One night, while Ollie and Dinah attended a Queen Industries-related social event, Roy had come crashing into the penthouse through the living room window, badly hurt from an encounter with one of Ivo's latest inventions, and it was up to Artemis to patch him up. Something had changed between them that night, as she slept on the floor next to his battered figure atop a bloodied sheet on the sofa. They developed a newfound respect for each other; one that led to archery practices, glove shopping, joint patrols, and eventually, their midnight rendezvouses.

Artemis wasn't sure when she had started getting so attached to him, especially considering their rocky first few interactions when they were younger, but perched on a rooftop reminiscing over their relationship or whatever he considered them to be (Was she just a hookup? A replacement for her sister who she knows he had some weird, unhealthy flirtation with, or did he actually give a damn about her?), she knew that she was falling faster than she would had she plummeted to the ground right then and there.

"You know, you probably reopened your wound climbing up here," came a familiar voice from behind the blonde.

She smiled wistfully, pulled her legs up, and turned her body to the side to face a shirtless Roy, whose features were obscured by sunlight, but Batman-insignia-covered pants were not. "And yet with an injured leg I probably still managed to get up here faster than you," she teased.

His brows furrowed before his lips quirked up into a smirk. "From the looks of your costume, I'd say you weren't fast enough. How badly were you injured?"

Artemis looked away from him and back to the skyline. It was moments like this that made her think he might actually have feelings for her and got her hopes up like the silly, boy-crazed girls that starred in M'gann's favorite shows. "I'm fine, Speedy. I'm more concerned over the state of my cloak."

Roy grumbled at her use of his old alias, and climbed onto the ledge behind her. "Speaking of which, I couldn't help but notice that you forgot to put it in the hamper."

Artemis barked out a laugh. "Sorry, Roy, I didn't know you were so uptight about the laundry."

"Well, I figured since I already have to wash my sheets since _somebody_ bled all over them, I'd kill two birds with one stone."

"There you go, accusing me again! Did we not learn anything from the whole mole-thing?"

Roy groaned. "_Please_ don't bring that up. I really was – _am_ sorry about that whole fiasco."

Artemis hesitated. "I know," she finally breathed.

The two sat in silence, and Artemis felt his arms snake around her waist, and he pulled her to sit against his chest between his thighs. She froze and felt her body tense up.

"I don't know how, but somehow you'll manage to roll right over this ledge and down a couple dozen stories," was his only explanation.

Artemis rolled her eyes and allowed herself to relax into his embrace.

"It'd be intentional, if only to get away from you. And to go pick up some of those éclairs I like so much."

"You and those damn éclairs...I swear, it's unhealthy how often you eat those things."

"Bite me. You're already on my list for not picking up anymore since the last time I was here."

Roy sighed. "Fine. I'll go pick up a half-dozen while you and Dinah go shopping with M'gann."

Artemis coughed in surprise. "You actually remembered that?"

"Well, yeah. You kept ranting about dress fittings and being in the bridal party last week. How could I not?"

_'True, true,'_ Artemis thought with a shrug.

"Plus you threw a chicken breast at my head when I told you to let it go."

Artemis smiled at the memory of dinner in his kitchen the week before. "I'll do it again too, if I don't come back to a box of fresh éclairs on the counter when I get home."

_Home._

Artemis blanched at her wording. "Well, I didn't mean _our_ home, I just –"

She could practically hear the amused smile on his face as he responded. "Save it, Blondie. You practically live here anyway. You can have the rest of the dresser if you want. The walk-in's huge. And I know you know where the spare key to my place is hidden." _'The top of the door frame to the left.' _"You might as well take that too."

Artemis didn't say anything for what felt like hours before she managed a shaky response. "Are…are you asking me to move in with you?"

He paused. "I suppose I am. Unless you'd rather stay in your _lovely_ studio apartment? I know how much you _hate_ hot water, and you know _breathing room_." His voice dripped with sarcasm.

Artemis slapped his chest. "Shh. Those are starting to sound like great alternatives to living with you. Besides, I still think you're only offering to keep a better eye on me. I may be a mo –"

"_Don't say it." _He sighed. "If I'm going to have a half-naked blonde woman crawling into the roof of my apartment building regularly, the neighbors ought to get to know her, right? You know, so they're not alarmed."

She nodded, chuckling a bit. "Like anybody saw me. Or you." A smug look spread over Artemis' face, and she sighed. "You know, I _will_ be going to a bridal shop today…If there's anything else you want to ask me, now would be the time to do it."

"Don't push your luck, Replacement," Roy chided. "I will push you off of this building."

"If I go down, I'm taking you with me, Harper."

…

"_You are the risk I'll always take,_

_The only branch I'll never break,_

_Those fears we'll blow them all way"_

_- "I'll Hold My Breath" by Ellie Goulding _

…

**Author's Note:** _I kind of hate the way this ended, but at this point…I have stopped caring. This is the longest story I've published on this account, and it took a long time to finish, my goodness. Anyways, I hope you enjoyed, and don't forget to leave a review! Reviews make me happy._

_Thanks for reading!_


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